Review Summary

This pro-Palestinian documentary attempts to prosecute Israel in the court of U.S. public opinion, with a condensed argument that blames Ariel Sharon, Israel's prime minister, for his allegedly aggressive tactics and the U.S. news media for its allegedly misled viewpoints. Whether or not the film convinceingly casts Mr. Sharon as the decisive destabilizer, viewers will have no doubts that the region is seriously, murderously out of balance. The tough-talking documentary is helmed by Sut Jhally, a professor of communications at the University of Massachusetts, and other academics and advocates come on camera to complain that Palestinians are largely ignored, mischaracterized or even demonized in American broadcast reports. The lack of sympathy is described in conspiratorial terms as the masterstroke of Israeli image-makers and message massagers, and U.S. broadcasters are criticized for coverage that seems, according to the film, pliant and reductionist. The documentary largely ignores Palestinian leadership, which has surely played a part in the conflict’s broken vows and broken hearts. And such a lack of dispassion weakens the one-sided film’s bold and detailed argument. — Ned Martel